


Koi No Yokan

by SchizoidFreak



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: F/M, Pre-Relationship, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-18
Updated: 2015-12-18
Packaged: 2018-05-07 10:47:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5453891
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SchizoidFreak/pseuds/SchizoidFreak
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"koi no yokan"<br/>(n.) lit. "Premonition of Love"; the sense one can have upon first meeting another person that the two of them are going to fall in love.<br/>This differs from the idea "love at first sight" in that it does not imply that the feeling of love exists, rather it refers to the knowledge that a future love is inevitable.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Koi No Yokan

Meris Shepard met Kaidan Alenko at a celebration in honor of her friend Chaz McAllister’s promotion to Lieutenant Commander. The informal event was held at the Oculus, a small, unassuming bar-restaurant owned by a crewmate’s dad or uncle or other; it was their usual hangout whenever they happened to be on Arcturus Station at the same time. In fact, the turnout that night was better than it had been in a while, though Meris guessed it was because Chaz had invited squadmates from his current posting. There were also people he knew outside of their little circle of misfits, hence Alenko and a few other faces she didn’t recognize.

When Chaz introduced them, Meris expected him to ask her about Akuze, but Alenko simply gave a polite nod, a slight smile, and shook her hand as if she were just another Marine. His eyes, however – beautiful amber eyes – told her that he knew perfectly well who she was. Meris appreciated his tact and instantly decided that she liked him.

The evening wore on; drinks were served and toasts were made. Zander Rossetti, Meris’s best friend, was regaling the younger corporals and privates with stories of how he had annihilated “batarian scum” back in 2178. Meris was listening with one ear as she found herself keeping track of Alenko’s movements. She wasn’t sure why. He was handsome, admittedly more than most; he seemed reserved, yet friendly. He didn’t talk much, but she thought his voice, what little she had heard, was rather soothing. On two or three occasions, she heard him take part in the conversation with a subtle snarky comment, delivered in a deadpan tone. Chaz had mentioned that they knew each other from Earth, but Meris had a hard time imagining Alenko in a gang. She wasn’t one to judge by appearances, but he seemed genuinely gentle and kind. The stories Chaz had shared during their N training were anything but. Then again, gentle and kind didn’t exactly mesh with the military, and yet there he was.

She threw another glance his way and couldn’t hold back a smirk when she saw him quickly look away. Huh. Maybe he was just as intrigued as she was. That was when she decided to invite him to dance.

Meris Shepard couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment the realization hit her, but by the end of that dance she knew one thing with absolute certainty: Kaidan Alenko was now inextricably part of her life, for better or worse.

**Author's Note:**

> Initially posted on Tumblr for Shenko Appreciation Week 2015 - Day 1: First Encounters  
> Revised, hopefully improved.


End file.
